Game Boy Coding Adventure is a hands-on guide to programming one of the most iconic consoles ever built. And there is magic here: By leveraging the simplified assembly language of this retro machine, you’ll learn how to control every aspect of the Game Boy’s 8-bit hardware.
As you build tile-based graphics, sprite animations, sound effects, input handling, timers, and more, you’ll discover how hardware behaves—and how software components work together to run interactive programs. Along the way, you’ll gain a strong foundation in systems programming, mastering concepts like memory management, registers, interrupts, and I/O.
You’ll learn how to:
Write and debug assembly using RGBDS, the standard development toolchain
Work with tiles, sprites, backgrounds, windows, and colour palettes
Control sound channels, interrupts, timers, frame pacing, and the joypad
Leverage memory banking, DMA, and serial communication for more complex game features
Experiment with the Super Game Boy, Game Boy Colour, and the Game Boy Printer
Written by a veteran game developer with over 15 years of experience building graphics engines and shipping titles across PC, mobile, and consoles, this book teaches more than just syntax. It takes you back to a simpler platform with a reduced instruction set that’s perfect for learning. You’ll write assembly code that runs directly on real hardware, see the results immediately, and learn how to debug, optimize, and control every cycle. You’ll also build game-ready components and develop a clear understanding of how software and hardware interact.
Why stop now? Slot in the cartridge, flip the switch, and start coding.
Author Bio
Maximilien Dagois has over 15 years of experience building graphics as a professional game developer. His credits include Final Fantasy XIV, Dragon Quest Builders, and Pokémon Ranger. Now an engineer at Google, he brings his passion for retro hardware and systems programming to a new generation of coders. He lives in Tokyo.
Table of contents
Foreword Acknowledgments Introduction
Part I: Getting Started Chapter 1: Game Boy Fundamentals Chapter 2: Assembly Language Basics Chapter 3: The Game Boy Toolchain Chapter 4: The Sample Assembly Code Template
Part II: Essential DMG Programming Chapter 5: Graphics Overview Chapter 6: Graphics Asset Management Chapter 7: High-Level Features Chapter 8: The Joypad Chapter 9: Audio
Part III: Advanced Game Boy Programming Chapter 10: The Counter and Timer Chapter 11: Serial Communication Chapter 12: Advanced Graphics Chapter 13: Memory Bank Controllers Chapter 14: Interrupts Chapter 15: Programming and Debugging Tricks
Part IV: Beyond the Game Boy Chapter 16: Game Boy Color Chapter 17: Game Boy Printer Chapter 18: Super Game Boy Chapter 19: Going Further
Appendix A: Instructions Appendix B: Opcodes Index
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